Final victim of Asiana crash reaches settlement with airline

Updated 9:24 pm, Thursday, September 21, 2017

Photo: Marcio Jose Sanchez, Associated Press

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This Asiana plane struck the rocky seawall at the end of the tarmac, ripping the back of the aircraft off and hurling several passengers and crew members across the runway as the jet spun around and skidded to a stop. less

This Asiana plane struck the rocky seawall at the end of the tarmac, ripping the back of the aircraft off and hurling several passengers and crew members across the runway as the jet spun around and skidded to ... more

Photo: Marcio Jose Sanchez, Associated Press

Final victim of Asiana crash reaches settlement with airline

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A Santa Clara dental surgeon was awarded an undisclosed sum of money from Asiana Airlines on Thursday for injuries suffered when she was a passenger on a jet that crashed at San Francisco International Airport, killing three people and injuring 187.

Dr. Kyung Rhan Rha was the last of dozens of passengers and crew members on the ill-fated Boeing 777 from South Korea to settle her case. She and her daughter were among 307 people aboard Asiana Flight 214 when it crashed on the runway at SFO four years ago.

“After a long legal battle, we are pleased to say that the parties have been able to reach a confidential settlement,” said Rha’s lawyer, Ronald Goldman, who would not disclose details.

The airplane was descending on July 6, 2013, when the pilots miscalculated the speed and altitude, causing the landing gear to hit a seawall just south of the main runway, according to federal investigators.

Rha, a dentist and oral surgeon, said she and her daughter, who was 14 at the time, were thrown violently about the cabin during the crash. The daughter settled with the airline this year, according to Robin McCall, a spokeswoman for the law firm representing Rha.

McCall said Rha sustained serious injuries, including damage to her right arm that prevents her from properly grasping tools and performing surgeries. She was seeking damages for physical injuries as well as emotional trauma and hospital and rehabilitation costs.

The National Transportation Safety Board ruled that the three pilots in the cockpit bungled the landing by, among other things, deactivating the plane’s automatic airspeed control system, causing it to slow to a near stall. The plane hit the rocky seawall at the end of the tarmac, ripping the back of the aircraft off and hurling several passengers and crew members across the runway as the jet spun around and skidded to a stop.

Two teenage girls were killed, and a third was hit and killed by a fire truck after she was covered by flame-retardant foam.

More than 100 passengers reached confidential settlements with Asiana. The family of the girl run over by the truck reached a confidential settlement with the city of San Francisco.

Last year, Asiana agreed to pay San Francisco $3.45 million to resolve civil claims and cover legal fees and cleanup, according to the city attorney’s office, which negotiated the deal.